BP Adams Announces Open Application Period For FY20 Capital Budget Process
Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams encouraged City agencies, borough schools, and community-based organizations (CBOs) to apply for capital funding from his office for Fiscal Year 2020 (FY20) funding this week.
On Monday, Adams announced the open application period for Fiscal Year 20 capital funding. Since the beginning of his administration, Adams has allocated more than $286 million to capital projects borough-wide.
In FY19, the Office of the Brooklyn Borough President received a total capital allocation of more than $40 million, which Adams distributed to 220 budget investments across all 18 community districts in Brooklyn.
Highlights of last year’s achievements included more than $25 million to advance science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics (STEAM) education across more than 175 schools in the borough; $5.6 million to improve parks and open space; $3.3 million to create and preserve affordable housing; $2.9 million to enhance community development projects; $2.2 million to support health care and social services, and $1.4 million to improve cultural institutions and libraries.
“I encourage City agencies, schools, and CBOs to submit their proposals on how they can build a better borough through the support of capital budget funding from my administration. Capital budget allocations are a critical component of my role as Brooklyn’s chief executive. It is funding that will undoubtedly make a difference in improving service delivery and helping make Brooklyn a great place to raise healthy children and families,” said Adams.
All requests for capital funding from the Office of the Brooklyn Borough President must be submitted via Borough President Adams’ online capital funding application, which can be found on his website, here.
The FY20 application process opened on Friday, December 21st, and the deadline to submit a request is 11:59 PM on Wednesday, February 13th.
Eugene Announces Free Legal Services Event
City Council member Mathieu Eugene (D-Flatbush, East Flatbush, Prospect Lefferts Gardens) alongside the New York Legal Assistance Group (NYLAG) announced a free civil legal service event to be held today on the Mobile Legal Help Center.
The event will feature legal services offered through the mobile bus in the areas of: housing, public benefits, disability and healthcare assistance, identity theft, debt management, consumer credit, immigration, domestic violence, divorce, custody, employment, advance planning and Superstorm Sandy.
The bus will be stationed from 10 a.m to 3 p.m., today Jan. 9, at 900 Rogers Avenue (between Snyder Ave & Albemarle Rd) in Flatbush.
Those interested can make an appointment with Councilman Eugene’s Office by calling 718-287-8762 or emailing CMEugeneEvents@gmail.com.
CM Williams Denounces Trump’s Oval Office Address
City Council Member Jumaane D. Williams (D-Flatbush, East Flatbush, Midwood), Deputy Leader, denounced President Donald Trump’s Oval Office address last night.
On Tuesday night, Trump gave a special address to the nation regarding immigration, his border wall and the ongoing government shutdown. According to the Washington Post, Trump declared “a growing humanitarian and security crisis” at the southern border and blamed congressional Democrats for the partial government shutdown that started three weeks ago.
The speech included a harrowing picture of danger and death along the U.S.-Mexico border, with Trump describing undocumented immigrants as murderers, rapists and drug smugglers. He went on to demand Congress appropriate $5.7 billion for a steel barrier, he believes is the only solution to the problem.
“Every day, Trump further diminishes the office of the Presidency, and this stunt was just another extension of that damage, using the Oval Office to gain a wider audience for his lies and fear-mongering. Trump is attempting to manufacture a crisis to cover for his ineptitude, and scapegoating vulnerable populations to advance his nationalist agenda.
As hundreds of thousands of federal workers lose out on the paychecks they and their families depend on, as important services are denied the American people because of the shutdown, he continues to deflect, to lie, and to stoke hatred and fear with a ‘crisis’ of his own making.
Real crises are the over half a million homeless individuals in our country, the tens of millions without health insurance, the 30,000 people killed each year in the gun violence epidemic. On a local level, we will continue to work on solutions to these issues. If Trump could turn his attention from an asinine wall, maybe our federal government could do the same. This address was nothing more than political hackery by a man who is himself a national crisis,” said Williams.
Velazquez, Gillibrand Reintroduce Bill To Establish PR Hurricanes Commission
Congressmember Nydia Velazquez (D-Brooklyn, Lower Manhattan, Queens) and U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) reintroduced legislation this week to establish a “9/11-style” independent commission to investigate the federal response to Hurricanes Irma and Maria in Puerto Rico.
The National Commission of the Federal Response to Natural Disasters in Puerto Rico Act would analyze several factors that impact the disaster response. Those factors include death toll accuracy and methodology, federal preparedness guidelines issued ahead of the hurricane season, the vulnerability of Puerto Rico’s economic situation, adequacy of the Island’s telecommunications, and the capacity of the Federal government to quickly mobilize and respond to disasters and emergencies in Puerto Rico.
“It is clear now, from multiple analyses, that thousands lost needlessly lost their lives because of the federal government’s feeble response to these hurricanes and their aftermath. I believe that the magnitude of this catastrophe warrants the creation of a nonpartisan panel to fully bring to light not only the errors that were made, but also how we can be certain this never happens again,” said Velazquez.
“The storms were bad enough, but the government’s response to them was truly horrific, and we need to get to the bottom of exactly what went so terribly wrong. That’s why I’m introducing legislation to create a new, 9/11-style Congressional commission to investigate exactly how and why the federal government abandoned its responsibilities and turned its back on Puerto Rico. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation just as they would if a natural disaster hit their own states,” said Gillibrand.
“This legislation would compel an independent investigation of the clearly inadequate preparedness, response, and recovery efforts to Hurricanes Irma and Maria to uncover what went wrong in Puerto Rico so we can ensure it does not happen again,” said Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-NY).
